Complex questions. Clear answers.

Great market research considers all sides of a business decision. It leads to tough choices and doesn’t dance around recommendations. Above all, it provides context and clarity.

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Why You Should Work With Us

Businesses need clear direction. But the world is complex. Market research that ignores that complexity is often simplistic, superficial or wrong. We don’t cut through complexity. We deal with it. We factor it into our research. We filter and refine it.

Ultimately, we deliver clear answers

Answers that resolve the divide between complexity and clarity. Answers that are correct. If this is interesting to you, read some stories of how and for whom Dig has worked. Or, see who’s behind Dig.

How Dig’s Different

Dig brings market research into the real world. This requires us to integrate complexity – business questions, competitive contexts in which consumers make choices, and methodological decisions. We can do this because our senior consultants collaborate internally and with clients on every project to develop custom-designed solutions that address the business’ needs. Our methods are more labour intensive, but they deliver superior results.

The way we work

We eagerly look outside of market research, and then integrate the opportunities we discover into advanced methodologies and ways of delivering data. We don’t ask people why they think or behave a certain way; we derive it. We don’t ask people what they will do; we create simulated decision environments and allow them to act. Wherever possible, the numbers we present are those that matter to the business: volume, revenue and profit.

The way we don’t work

A lot of market research lives in a parallel universe, where people know why they do what they do, where their choices are logical, where they can predict their own behaviour. It’s a place where methodologies developed years ago, that no longer reflect current thinking, are permitted to survive. This universe has its own language. A language of top two box scores and performance vs. normative databases that are filled with failed ideas. This language is divorced from the language of business.

Market research shouldn’t be a barrier to change

This other universe exists because it benefits many market research vendors. It allows for simplistic, scalable methodologies managed by junior staff. But this universe does not benefit market research users. Those who enter it find that research often becomes an obstacle to change. We Dig people have all seen this universe, clocked its failings, and created a better one of our own.

What We’re Thinking About

We invest in our business and in our industry. Here are some of the things we are thinking about and working on.

Big Data Tools

We believe the marriage of big data and market research leads to deeper insights and action-oriented prescriptive analytics. This means getting a business’ behavioural, transactional, and social data out of their silos and combining it with customized primary research. To facilitate this integration, our data scientists have developed a suite of custom APIs and platforms like Dig Sandbox.

Machine Learning and AI

Integrating the latest in technology is one of Dig’s core values so our data scientists consistently use the latest machine learning and AI to refresh old methodologies and generate new ones.

Upsiide

Upsiide is a mobile app that engages the next generation in market research. It uses a swipe-left, swipe-right interface to assess ideas. The respondent task is simple, but it allows for sophisticated analytics.

TURF

We have used TURF (Total Unduplicated Reach and Frequency) to help companies make a variety of optimizations (menu, product line-up, coupon) since 2010. We now have an online tool that uses custom algorithms which allows for advanced analyses to be done quickly on a simple, self-serve interface.

Data Visualization

We created tools to make data, particularly big data, easy to interpret. Network and correspondence maps can be created by our analysts, or by our clients, in a matter of minutes.

Multicultural and Newcomer

We are a multicultural company in a multicultural city. To further understand our world, we created the syndicated Newcomer Financial Monitor Report that helps Canadian financial institutions understand and assist newcomers.

420

We are delving into how perceptions on recreational marijuana are leading to legal and behavioural changes, and how legalization will cascade into adjacent industries: alcohol; quick serve restaurants, and consumer packaged goods. The Cannabis Culture Report helps us, and our clients, predict and prepare for this change.

To find out more about what Dig is thinking about and creating, please visit our blog.

What Dig Delivers

We help our clients understand the market. We translate that understanding into action. We build a business case for change. And we speak in the language of business.

Join the Team

We have experienced strong growth since our launch in 2010. This creates opportunities for learning and career advancement. The roles we have listed here are our perspective on what we need. But we try to be open-minded. If you think you would be a great addition to the Dig team and have a different vision of what role you can play, please contact us.

We are focused on building a better market research agency. What does “better” mean? The most important thing to understand is that we have tools, approaches and a perspective on how research should be done, but we do not sell ‘canned’ methodologies. So if you want to manage an established process, Dig is not the place for you. People who succeed at Dig Insights either have a fantastic technical understanding of market research or are willing to build this understanding. Ideal team members are smart, creative and fun. They use quantitative research to work through complex questions and deliver clear answers. They question established research practices and are passionate about helping our clients to move their businesses forward. They are comfortable working in a fast moving, flat organization.

Stuart Collins

Q. What was your background before joining Dig Insights?

In university I had the opportunity to teach tutorials as an undergrad TA and work as a research assistant at the McMaster Institute for Transportation and Logistics. Time as a TA honed my skills at leading a room through presentation and discussion, and as a research intern I got my first taste of extracting insights from survey data.

From this experience it felt like a natural flow-through to take the plunge into professional market research. Experiences with communication and data empowered me to land my first Research Analyst role with a small Toronto firm and I was off to the races. I’ve recently upgraded to working in a similar position with Dig and haven’t looked back since.

Q. How do you think market research will change in the next 3 years?

At McMaster I did a minor in Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Modern GIS capabilities are now moving to mobile app-based tech, and I feel like there may be a great opportunity to interlock GIS APIs and survey-based research. Don’t want to spoil it, but there are advancements to be made in the interaction between real-time geotagged mobile data and the future of market research.

Q. If you were not working in this industry or in your current role, what work would you want to do?

The passion for fashion is real. Although I generally tend towards timeless looks, I strive to be considered well-dressed. It’s always been in the back of my mind that I wanted to work in clothing design; nothing crazy, just smart clothes & equipment for everyday life in the modern world. I may still pursue this dream, as my career is young, but not yet. Once I’ve mastered the Market Research craft, I’ll be free to make my mark on the style industry.